Not applicable.
Not applicable.
Not applicable.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of lockable license plate holders in general and in particular to a shiftable cover arrangement to block the mounting screws that attach the license tags to a vehicle framework.
2. Description of Related Art
As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,392,619; 5,983,539; 5,012,602; and 5,404,664, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse license plate securing arrangements.
While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical license plate holder arrangement which selectively covers and uncovers the mounting screws that are employed to affix the license plate and license plate holder to a vehicle framework.
As most car owners are aware, there has been a recent surge in the occurrence of license plate thefts which represents a major inconvenience for any vehicle owner who has been the victim of this type of theft.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need for a new and improved lockable license plate holder that effectively covers the mounting screws that attach the holder framework to the license plate and the license plate to the vehicle framework; and the provision of such a construction is the stated objective of the present invention.
Briefly stated, the lockable license plate holder that forms the basis of the present invention comprises in general a holder unit and a locking unit disposed within the holder unit and adapted to selectively cover and uncover the conventional fasteners that are routinely employed to affix a license plate and license plate holder to a vehicle framework in a well recognized manner.
As will be explained in greater detail further on in the specification, the holder unit comprises a license plate holder housing member including an outer open generally rectangular framework element having a generally U-shaped hollow passageway formed therein which is further provided with a plurality of apertured mounting tabs and a lower slot which accommodate portions of the locking unit; and an inner bracket that cooperates with the outer framework element to protect the registration decal.
In addition, the rear face of the license plate holder housing member is provided with a plurality of apertured mounting tabs which are dimensioned to receive a like plurality of conventional fasteners for captively engaging the license plate between the license plate holder and a vehicle framework.
Furthermore, the locking unit includes a lock member operatively associated with a pair of locking arms slideably disposed respectively in the upper and lower portions of the framework element and having a plurality of cover tabs that extend through the slots in the framework element and are selectively movable from a covering to an exposed relationship relative to said apertured mounting tabs.